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The Balcon

When tasked with designing The Balcon, the restaurant at Sofitel London St James, Russell Sage took inspiration from the interior design within Coco Chanel's 1920s Parisian apartment. The result is a grand brasserie serving French-British food in beautiful surroundings with the period detailing you would expect from a listed building - the double-height space used to be the banking hall of Cox and Kings Bank. Russell Sage Studios have worked on several high profile projects in London including The Savoy and the Royal Suite at The Goring as well as the bar at the Zetter Townhouse. At The Balcon the interior is all wrought iron ballustrades and spiral staircases that lead up to the champagne bar - this is a French brasserie after all, a champagne bar is 'de rigueur', naturellement. The menu is unasshamedly French too with garlic heavily accenting dishes like Herefordshire snails and pig's head terrine while Parisian style ham cooked in broth leaves no doubt as to its origin. There's a charcuterie section where dried saucisson and game salami are served with homemade pickles, condiments and toast. Mains are divided into cooking styles of rotisserie, slow cooked and en cocotte, or pan and grill. Examples include choices of Scottish beef and foie gras cottage pie with chanterelle mushrooms, or Devon rose lamb neck served with barley stew, girolle mushrooms, chestnuts and thyme puff pastry as well as pan-fried black bream with braised fennel, sea weed and beurre blanc. Tres grand.